This invention relates to an apparatus and method for encapsulating and reinforcing the electrical interconnections between an integrated circuit chip and a substrate. More specifically, this invention relates to an improved molding apparatus to encapsulate and reinforce solder joints between an integrated circuit chip and a Z substrate.
An integrated circuit chip assembly generally comprises an integrated circuit chip attached to a substrate, typically a chip carrier or a circuit board. The most commnonly used integrated circuit chip is composed primarily of silicon having a coefficient of thermal expansion of about 2 to 4 ppm/.degree. C. The chip carrier or circuit board is typically composed of either a ceramic material having a coefficient of thermal expansion of about 6 ppm/.degree. C., or an organic material, possibly reinforced with organic or inorganic particles or fibers, and having a coefficient of thermal expansion in the range of about 6 to 50 ppm/.degree. C. One technique well known in the art for attaching the chip to the substrate is flip chip bonding. In flip chip bonding, a pattern of solder balls, usually having a diameter of about 0.002 to 0.006 inches, is formed on the one surface of the integrated circuit chip, fully or partially populating the active chip surface with interconnection sites. A matching footprint of solder wettable terminals is provided on the substrate. The integrated circuit chip is then placed in alignment with the substrate, and the chip to substrate connections are formed by reflowing the solder balls. During operation of the integrated circuit chip assembly, cyclic temperature excursions cause the substrate and the integrated circuit chip to expand and contract. Since the substrate and the integrated circuit chip have different coefficients of thermal expansion, they expand and contract at different rates causing the solder ball connections to weaken or even crack as a result of fatigue. To remedy this situation, it is common industry practice to reinforce the solder ball connections with a thermally curable polymer material known in the art as an underfill encapsulant.
Underfill encapsulants are typically filled with ceramic particles to control their rheology in the uncured state, and to improve their thermal and mechanical properties in the cured state. Underfill encapsulants have been used widely to improve the fatigue life of integrated circuit chip assemblies consisting of an integrated circuit chip of the flip chip variety attached to a substrate comprised of an alumina ceramic material having a coefficient of thermal expansion of about 6 ppm/.degree. C. More recently, integrated circuit chip assemblies have been manufactured using substrates comprised of a reinforced organic material having a composite coefficient of thermal expansion of about 20 ppm/.degree. C.
The underfill encapsulation process is typically accomplished by dispensing a liquid encapsulant directly onto the substrate at one or more points along the periphery of the integrated circuit chip. The encapsulant is drawn into the space between the integrated circuit chip and the substrate by capillary forces, and forms a fillet around the perimeter of the integrated circuit chip. The diameter of the filler particles in the encapsulant is typically smaller than the height of the space so that flow is not restricted, with typical encapsulant formulations having viscosities of about 10 Pa-s at the dispense temperature. Once the underfilling process is completed, the encapsulant is heat cured in an oven. Cured encapsulants typically have coefficients of thermal expansion in the range of 20 to 40 ppm/.degree. C. and a Young's Modulus of about 1 to 3 GPa, depending to a large degree on the filler content. Depending on the materials the integrated circuit chip and the substrate are composed of, it may be desirable to further alter the cured properties of the encapsulant. However, the requirement that the encapsulant have low viscosity in the uncured state so that it flows readily into the space between the integrated circuit chip and the substrate severely restricts the formulation options. For example, the addition of more ceramic filler would result in a lower coefficient of thermal expansion, but would cause an increase in the viscosity of the uncured encapsulant. Furthermore, even with the use of underfill encapsulation, fatigue life of an integrated circuit chip assembly is shorter when the integrated circuit chip is interconnected to an organic substrate as opposed to a ceramic substrate due to the greater mismatch in thermal expansion between the typical integrated circuit chip and organic substrates.
Also known in the art is a method wherein a package body is formed around the perimeter of the flip chip using a two step process. First the integrated circuit chip assembly is underfilled as described above. Next, a package body is formed around the perimeter of the integrated circuit chip using a molding process. The prior art also suggests a process, wherein additional reinforcement is achieved by forming a package body around the integrated circuit chip assembly using a single step operation. In this process, a large opening of about 50% of the size of the integrated circuit chip is formed in the substrate directly underneath the integrated circuit chip. This approach essentially eliminates the space between the integrated circuit chip and the substrate that is typical of a conventional integrated circuit chip to substrate interconnection, but has the drawback of limiting the active surface area of the integrated circuit chip that can be utilized for forming interconnections.
The prior art also suggests a molding apparatus comprised of an upper and lower mold which when joined together around an integrated circuit lead frame defines a package area. Encapsulant material flows from a reservoir into a package area forming a packing body around the integrated circuit chip lead frame.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved apparatus and a method of encapsulating and reinforcing the electrical interconnections of an integrated circuit chip assembly which allows the use of highly viscous encapsulating materials. It is also an object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus for encapsulating the integrated circuit chip assembly which enables flush molding without reducing the active interconnection area of the integrated circuit chip or substantially altering the exposed surface of the integrated circuit chip.